Liston Publicly Labels Pregnant Teens "Sluts"

Rep. Larry Liston, R-Colorado Springs, said that young, unmarried women who become pregnant and the men or boys who have intercourse with them are "sluts" during a lunch caucus meeting with health care professionals Wednesday.

According to a report in The Gazette (Colorado Springs), Liston said that "In my parents’ day and age, they were sent away, they were shunned, they were called what they are. There was at least a sense of shame. There’s no sense of shame today. Society condones it. . . . I think it’s wrong. They’re sluts. And I don’t mean just the women. I mean the men, too."

The report goes on to quote Liston's El Paso County colleague, Rep. Stella Garza-Hicks, R-Colorado Springs, as being "disturbed" and "offended" by Liston's remarks.

According to The Gazette report, Liston later explained that he was trying to say that teens who can't afford the children to whom they become parents are able to turn to the government for financial help, which in his view contributes to the prevalence of teen pregnancy.

The Denver Post reported this morning that Liston apologized to Garza-Hicks after his wife expressed concern about his choice of words.